“The Dark Knight” uses a cinematic 2×4 to force your contemplation of the unspeakable. If you could only ’save’ one person, would you choose your wife or your child? How far would you go, how many people would you be willing to kill, to save your own life? When faced with a deep, unendurable grief, can one endure?
And yet, as brilliant and intoxicating as the movie is, the revelatory choices in the story only accent the stark reality – this is the last movie Heath Ledger made before he died.
This is the last movie Heath Ledger chose to make before he died.
The movie presents moment after moment which forces its characters to – in the midst of terror – make choices on which the lives of others depend. Choices which ultimately illustrate the content of their character.
Not every choice, however, is one made it the midst of crisis. It’s the choices we make on a day-to-day basis, in the management of the minutia of our life, which can just as clearly reveal who we really are.
There is no way that Heath Ledger could know that “The Dark Knight” would be his final movie, the final gift of his performance. Yet he tore through that movie with a deep, soul scarring fury.
He loses himself in the make-up and mayhem to become an animal, a scorching villain that transforms everything about the world Nolan has created and makes the defeats that much darker and the moments of spiritual triumph that much sweeter.
As Ledger’s last performance on film, it’s destined to be remembered as his James Dean song, a howling tornado of energy that tears across the screen, reshaping everything in its path. He’s perfect. – Pajiba
If someone had told Ledger that this was the last movie he would ever make, I don’t think he could have possibly given a better performance.
Someone, somewhere, will die today. That person will have no idea what is to happen; will go about their day as usual, executing a time worn routine.
If it were you, what would your choices reveal? It is the decisions we make, when we think they don’t matter, that really show the world who we are and how we live.
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July 21, 2008 at 5:54 pm
SanityFound
“It is the decisions we make, when we think they don’t matter, that really show the world who we are and how we live.” Profound and true, it is one of my life motto’s, be true to yourself each and every moment of the day, it is possibly the only way to go with peace.
Great ode, am yet to see this incredible movie, now can’t wait!!!
hayden tompkins says:
When will it get to South Africa?
July 21, 2008 at 9:43 pm
SanityFound
Probably in a few years time, jokes probably next month – will have to check
July 21, 2008 at 10:35 pm
patrick
kudos to the makers Dark Knight for their record breaking opening weekend… it’s no wonder there’s talk of another one coming out ASAP
hayden tompkins says:
I can’t imagine how they are going to work around the joker but I look forward to seeing them try.
July 21, 2008 at 11:03 pm
Ed Howard
An excellent and very potent film. I’ve written a bit about the film on my blog, most recently a response to Keith Uhlich’s very negative review:
http://seul-le-cinema.blogspot.com/2008/07/on-violence-and-restraint-in-dark.html
hayden tompkins says:
Wow, he is taking it pretty personally. I very much like your review.
July 21, 2008 at 11:34 pm
samwrites2
I choose not to see it.
Still have to catch-up with seeing “Wall-E” and “Kung-Fu Panda.”
I saw enough real-life blood and mayhem for a lifetime already and usually skip these type movies after being insensitized by too many Quentin Tarantino films.
After all, can Health Ledger’s performance beat the real life cruelty of the woman who cut a baby out of a teen-aged mother and left the mother for dead?
Most likely the next film I’ll see will actually be “Kit Kittredge: An American Girl.”
I’d rather see someone sharpen a pencil to write with – not kill with.
-Sam
hayden tompkins says:
Would you see “Children of Men”? It’s another movie with an very potent, darkly beautiful social message.
July 22, 2008 at 2:44 am
mssc54
“If you could only ’save’ one person, would you choose your wife or your child?” – - – Clearly, my child. My wife would prefer our child since two out of three bio-daughters have children of their own and the two we are about to adopt are so young. Yep, definately my child(ren).
“How far would you go, how many people would you be willing to kill, to save your own life?” Not really enough information to give a true answer but I’m leaning toward none. Which reminds me of that song “Everybody wants to go to heaven but nobody wants to die.”
“When faced with a deep, unendurable grief, can one endure?” I have and I do.
It is amazing what the human spirit can endure and overcome when needed.
hayden tompkins says:
I like that you would save your child because it demonstrates a major value which you and wife share. It sounds like you are completely in partnership on that issue, so saving your child is in effect upholding your marriage.
July 22, 2008 at 9:07 pm
Kip de Moll
OK, you helped me with this movie. I found it so dark, sadistic and disturbing, it turned my stomach. Even my son came out feeling sad (but went the next day to see it again, anyway). Yes, it helps us contemplate the unthinkable. But I think these are questions we don’t actually need to ask ourselves; better to just act and react in the moment should the need to choose ever actually arrive.
For the rest of life, I love that you ask us to pay attention to the little moments and the choices we make as if they might be our last. THESE are the important things to think about. Not who would we choose to save, but how should we choose to LIVE. Living to that level of integrity, the rest is easy.
hayden tompkins says:
Kip, I think you just about said it all.
July 23, 2008 at 2:19 am
mssc54
How sad, Keith Ledger is getting so much press did ya notice that “Batman” was arrested over the weekend for alledgedly assaulting his mum and sis? I guess he will get his name in the papers one way or the other on opening weekend.
Me synical… perish the thought!
hayden tompkins says:
I almost had a heart attack when I saw that. Turns out the Brits classify ‘yelling’ as assault. The allegation isn’t for a physical attack, thank God. My friends and I were discussing this at work and decided that we would have a lifetime sentence for “assault” if the US legal system worked the same way.
I highly doubt he would be involved in an attention seeking scheme like that. He is a very private person and always has been. He almost never shows up in the press.
August 2, 2008 at 5:20 pm
mspennylane
A good analogy with the Dark Knight and life choices in general. The film is definitely thought-provoking, extremely depressing and raises many questions about human nature. Thinking about the decisions I have made that would define me, I think I really need to stop thinking and start doing. I’ll try to keep these thoughts in mind, anyway.
hayden tompkins says:
Did you ever see “Children of Men”? It is also a rather bleak movie, but I never left a movie with more hope for humanity than when we left that one. TDK reminded me in some ways of COM.